Tripitaka Koreana

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Tripitaka Koreana

Buddhist literature

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July 14, 2026

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The Tripitaka Koreana is a collection of over 80,000 wooden blocks engraved with Buddhist scriptures. Carved in the 13th century, these blocks represent one of the most complete sets of Buddhist religious texts in Asia. The Tripitaka Koreana is housed in Haein Temple in South Korea, a site designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site.1

Buddhism was introduced to Korea in the 4th century CE and flourished, particularly during the Goryeo period (935–1392), when the Tripitaka Koreana was created. The Tripitaka itself, meaning "Three Baskets," is the canonical sacred literature of Theravada Buddhism, comprising the Vinaya Pitaka (rules for monks), the Sutta Pitaka (discourses of the Buddha), and the Abhidhamma Pitaka (doctrinal systematizations). These texts are written in Pali, a language closely related to Sanskrit.234

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Haein Temple
…valuable religious treasures, chiefly the Tripitaka Koreana. The latter is a collection of more than 80,000 wooden blocks engraved with Buddhist scriptures. Carved in the 13th century at a temple on Ganghwa Island, these blocks contain the most complete set of Buddhist religious texts in Asia. The depository in the…
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…valuable religious treasures, chiefly the Tripitaka Koreana. The latter is a collection of more than 80,000 wooden blocks engraved with Buddhist scriptures. Carved in the 13th century at a temple on Ganghwa Island, these blocks contain the most complete set of Buddhist religious texts in Asia. The depository in the…
Read More

Korean art
Koryŏ period (918–1392)
…wood-block edition of the entire Tripitaka, a long Buddhist canonical text, was created on Kanghwa Island in the mid-13th century as a commission of the government in exile. More than 80,000 engraved woodblocks—today stored at Haein Temple—were used to print this edition. Another major artistic achievement of the Koryŏ period…
Read More
…wood-block edition of the entire Tripitaka, a long Buddhist canonical text, was created on Kanghwa Island in the mid-13th century as a commission of the government in exile. More than 80,000 engraved woodblocks—today stored at Haein Temple—were used to print this edition. Another major artistic achievement of the Koryŏ period…
Read More

Buddhism
Korea
…in the publication of the Tripitaka Koreana, one of the most inclusive editions of Buddhist texts up to that time. After 25 years of research, a monk by the name of Ŭich’ŏn (Daigak Guksa; 1055–1101) published an outstanding three-volume bibliography of Buddhist literature. Ŭich’ŏn also sponsored the growth of the…
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…in the publication of the Tripitaka Koreana, one of the most inclusive editions of Buddhist texts up to that time. After 25 years of research, a monk by the name of Ŭich’ŏn (Daigak Guksa; 1055–1101) published an outstanding three-volume bibliography of Buddhist literature. Ŭich’ŏn also sponsored the growth of the…
Read More

Daegu
…of valuable religious treasures—chiefly the Tripitaka Koreana, the most complete set of Buddhist religious texts in Asia. The depository in the temple where the Tripitaka Koreana is stored was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1995.
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…of valuable religious treasures—chiefly the Tripitaka Koreana, the most complete set of Buddhist religious texts in Asia. The depository in the temple where the Tripitaka Koreana is stored was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1995.
Read More